Five years ago, Trevor Vittatoe came to UTEP, in part, because the other 119 Division I-A schools didn't want him.

He led the Trinity Trojans to Texas' Class 5A Division I state high school championship, but most of the time Vittatoe was handing the ball off to a stable of star running backs.

"I told him to send me film of all his throws," UTEP quarterbacks coach Aaron Price recalled. "He sent me film and it had 17 throws on it. I said, 'No, send me all your throws.' He said, 'I haven't thrown in the second half.' "

UTEP took a chance on him anyway because in the hour before the state championship game, offensive assistants Eric and Aaron Price got a good look at him warming up. The Miners offered and Vittatoe picked UTEP over his other option, Texas State.

If all goes well Saturday night, Vittaoe will pass his predecessor Jordan Palmer as the Miners' all-time leading passer.

"That means a lot," said Vittatoe, who needs 152 passing yards to move past Palmer's 11,084. "Even though that would be exciting, it's more important what the team does. That's more important than individual records. For all the seniors, we talk about that as a whole group.

"We haven't had much success and we want to be able to live up to that. We want to change our legacy."

As his senior season hits the midpoint, Vittatoe's legacy is indeed a mixed bag. A superlative winner who rarely threw in high school is the most prolific passer in school history while going 17-24 as a four-year starter.

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Vittatoe has also been on the sidelines for three of the worst defenses in school history (NCAA rankings: 118th in 2007, 115th in 2008 and 110th last year), something that has changed in the Miners' 4-1 start (60th this season in total defense) this year.

At any rate, his entire life he has been a model of resiliency, something put to the ultimate test his junior year in high school when his mother Kari died in a car accident. Since then he always writes her name on his wrist before games.

"I know she's watching me," he said. "That's a big motivator for me. It pushes me to do better even though I lost her. I'm sure she's proud of what I've done, what I've accomplished."

His parents were divorced at the time and after Kari's death he moved in with his father Vernon, who he has always been close to.

"Our relationship has grown a lot since she passed," Vittatoe said. "My dad took on a big role and it made our relationship closer. He's the other part of my motivation. He's supported everything I've done."

Said Vernon: "It was different with him living in the house. We could talk a lot more. He was a teen-aged boy, going through what he was going through, the challenges; it wasn't a cake walk. The experience brought us closer."

After he came to UTEP, Vittatoe bonded with Elijah Goldtrap, another 2006 recruit whose mother Lele passed away his junior year in high school.
The loss of his mother was the worst ordeal Vittatoe went through, but there were others. His freshman year, he was involved in a traffic accident driving to class (it was not his fault, according to investigating authorities) that kept him out of practice for a day.

In the game the following Saturday against SMU, he threw an early interception that was returned for a touchdown as the Miners fell behind 28-7.

"I remember him coming up to me on the sideline," Aaron Price said. "Usually a kid will be rattled, shell-shocked. He looked at me, smiled and shook his head and said, 'That was a bad throw.' He laughed it off. I thought, 'Wow, that kid has mental toughness.' "

After trailing 42-28 in the fourth quarter, Vittatoe rallied the team to overtime, throwing the game-tying touchdown pass in the final seconds. UTEP went on to win.

"That's where I built trust with the team," Vittatoe said. "In clutch situations, I always wanted to be one people can trust. That game not only boosted my confidence, it boosted the confidence of the guys around me."

A few days later, an elderly passenger in the other vehicle during that accident passed away. A few days after that, Vittatoe was named the Conference USA Offensive Player of the Week in a victory over Tulsa.

In his time at UTEP, he's also dealt with a foot injury that hampered him his entire sophomore year, a shoulder injury that required surgery after his freshman year and another shoulder injury that cost him this spring. Through that Vittatoe has missed a total of three quarters (that foot injury caused him to miss the last part of the New Mexico State game in 2008).

"For being his age, he's had a lot of things happen," Mike Price said. "It doesn't seem to faze him. He's a tough kid, physically tough, too. He acts so casual, but I think of it as calm and composed."

That showed again against Memphis this year when Vittatoe led a game-winning 95-yard drive to end the game, a game that included his former quarterback coach and current Memphis offensive coordinator, Eric Price.

"My brother called, he had been watching (a replay) of that game," Aaron Price said. "He said (Vittatoe) looked so calm and comfortable. In that situation, you can see the calmness on his face. There is no question he'll get it done."

"He has an even keel," Vernon said. "He calms everyone down around him. As a little kid he was a really excitable type. But he became more even keeled as he went into high school. He has a fiery spirit, but he has that cool collectedness about him."

His athletic ability was always there.

"When he was 4 years old, I was coaching Pee Wee baseball with his brother," Vernon said. "He was playing third base, he was 4 years old and he could throw a perfect strike to first base. He definitely had an arm."

Vittatoe soon gravitated to football, and in seventh grade was identified as Trinity's quarterback of the future. It was football that helped give Vittatoe the structure for his life and football that has seen him through hard times.

"It helped me overcome bad things," he said. "Football is my motivation. Football is what's always driven me to stay on the right track, do the right things. It's made me a stronger person."

Now the 22-year-old is poised to become the greatest passer in UTEP's 96-year football history.

"It's been the biggest blessing," Vernon said. "The opportunity, the faith, the confidence to put a quarterback in his freshman year. He struggled last year, but the coaches' confidence in him never wavered. He's had tremendous players around him. ... The offensive line has been tremendous, not to mention the receivers and running backs he's had.

"I think about it now, wow. It's hard to fathom the accomplishments, that breaking Palmer's records is just around the corner. It will be very emotional, very emotional."

The road has been long and tough, which will make the moment all the more special for UTEP's resilient quarterback.

Bret Bloomquist may be reached at bbloomquist@elpasotimes.com; 546-6359.